2 Timothy Study #8

“Following Christ When Life Gets Hard”

2 Timothy 3:10-17

Study #8 in 2 Timothy Series 

INTRODUCTION:

Paul wrote a lot of letters, and we love reading them. After all these centuries we’re still reading his epistles. But if he had ever written a book, I’m sure it too would have been a bestseller. A short biography of his life is included in the Book of Acts and little bits of his autobiography are sprinkled throughout his letters.

However, in 2 Corinthians 11:21-33 Paul tells us about what it had cost him to follow and serve Jesus Christ. He’s not bragging. He’s not looking for sympathy. He’s not claiming to be super spiritual because of all the persecution he had endured. He is simply explaining that to be a follower of Christ can be dangerous, very dangerous indeed.    

TRANSITION:

As American Christians we have a hard time relating to the concept of religious persecution because we have never experienced it. From its founding the citizens of this country have enjoyed freedom of worship. As a result, when we hear of Christians in other countries being murdered, tortured, and imprisoned we cannot wrap our minds around that reality.

But it’s true. For 2,000 years Christians have been persecuted for loving Jesus and wanting to follow and serve Him, and it’s still going on today. Moreover, as Paul explains in this letter and in others, in the last days that persecution is going to spread. It is going to get worse. As evil and spiritual darkness advance Christians can expect to experience more and more persecution.

But how are we to respond when the hard times come? Where can we turn? What can we cling to? In our study for today of 2 Timothy 3:10-17 Paul explains that we can depend on the Lord, on His character, on His proven track record of taking care of His people, but most of all, we can rely on His Word, the Sacred Scriptures.

NOTES on the Text:

Verse 10: Now you [Timothy] followed my teaching, conduct, purpose, faith, patience, love, perseverance,

·       “Now you…” Paul has just described in verses 1-9 the kind of people that will threaten the earth in the last days, and which Timothy must contend with in his own day. But it’s obvious that Paul drew a clear dividing line between Timothy and those ruled by the wicked spirit of the last days.

·       “…you followed…” This is what made Timothy different from the spirit of his age. He had carefully followed and learned from Paul’s “teaching, conduct, purpose, faith, patience, love, perseverance, persecutions, and sufferings.”

·       “followed” means that Paul did not merely teach Timothy these things in an academic sense. No, Timothy learned these things by carefully imitating Paul’s example. The best kind of Christianity is not only taught, but also caught by seeing it lived out in other people.

o   It all began with Timothy catching Paul’s “doctrine.” The reason Paul lived the way he lived was because he believed certain things. What we believe will determine how we live.

o   Timothy caught Paul’s “conduct.” There was just a certain way that Paul lived, and Timothy was around him enough to learn it and follow it.

o   Timothy caught Paul’s “purpose.” Paul’s life had a purpose. It was not without direction. He was going somewhere, and that purpose had been established by God. Timothy saw that in Paul, he caught it, and he wanted to live his life that way too.

o   Timothy caught Paul’s “faith, longsuffering, and love.” You could see in Paul that he had a “faith” not everyone had, and Timothy wanted to catch it. Paul was “patient” with the little irritations of people and life in a special way, and he had a “love” that made him stand out. Remember all of these flowed forth from the “teaching” – the Truth – Paul held on to and Timothy carefully followed. 

Verse 11: …persecutions, and sufferings, such as happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium and at Lystra; what persecutions I endured, and out of them all the Lord rescued me!

·       “…persecutions, and sufferings…” Timothy also caught these from Paul. We might think that the person who lives their life with the right teaching, conduct, purpose, faith, patience, and love would be loved and accepted by everyone – but they are not. Jesus told His disciples that the world would hate them, and He was right.

·       “such as happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, and at Lystra” Paul reminded Timothy of the specific occasions of persecution which he endured.

o   At Antioch, where Paul was kicked out of the city for preaching the Gospel (Acts 13:50).

o   At Iconium, where Paul was almost executed by stoning (Acts 14:5).

o   At Lystra, Timothy’s hometown, where they stoned Paul and left him for dead (Acts 14:19).

·       “…and out of them all the Lord rescued me” Paul remembered this as he sat in prison and awaited his execution. He knew that God was completely able to deliver him again, or that He might not. Paul was completely at peace, leaving it in the Lord’s hands. Persecution was not going to stop Paul from following hard after Jesus Christ.

o   Persecution must not stop Christians today nor in the future. We may not face much violent or even economic persecution in our culture right now, but that day is coming. 1 Peter 4:4 describes the mind-set of many of those who socially persecute Christians: “They think it strange that you do not run with them in the same flood of dissipation, speaking evil of you.” 

o   If we are not willing to have others think us strange; if we are not willing to be rejected by some for the sake of Jesus Christ; if we are not willing to be an outcast before some people, then we can never be true followers of Jesus Christ.

Verse 12: Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.   

• In fact, some level of persecution is certain for people who carefully follow Christ. Peter said, “Dear friends, don’t be surprised at the fiery trials you are going through, as if something strange were happening to you.” (1 Peter 4:12) And Jesus, knowing that He would suffer, He warned the disciples they would be treated the same because of their identity with Him. “Remember the word that I said to you: 'A servant is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you” (John 15:20).
• In our own day, Christians are being persecuted all over the world – in China, in Iran and the rest of the Muslim world, even in Russia, where a strong anti-missionary law was passed not long ago. And we can face persecution in a social way today.
• Christians are persecuted for the same reason Jesus was persecuted: “And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil” John 3:19. 

Verse 13: But evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.

• “Evil men” refers to the obvious, open enemies of Jesus. “Impostors” refers to those who appear good and many think of as fine, but they are actually destructive forces among Jesus’ followers.
• These two kinds of people, “evil men and impostors,” will “proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.” Paul gave us insight into how many people are effective deceivers among God’s people.
• Motives are important, but we can sometimes place too much importance on them. Much harm has been done by people who were sincerely deceived and who tried to do wrong things out of wonderful motives – and because others look at their wonderful hearts, they accept their dangerous deceptions. We can’t always go only by motives in others; we must measure them also by the TRUTH.

Verse 14: You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of, knowing from whom you have learned them,

• This is the key point to this section, around which the rest of the section develops. It is also the answer to the question implied in the title of this study: “How do we follow Christ when life gets hard?” The command itself is simple enough to understand. Paul told Timothy to “continue” – it is the same ancient Greek verb as when John wrote, “…therefore let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning.” (1 John 2:24).
• It was as if Paul wrote this: “Timothy, you learned these things. Right now, you firmly believe them. Now, you must continue in the things you have learned. The important thing is to abide in them, to continue in them, to never let them go.”
• “You, however…” or “But you…” Timothy was to strongly set himself against the course that some other men took. These men were described earlier in the letter. Timothy, as a man of God, was to live differently from them.
• To accomplish this he must “continue in the things he has learned and become convinced of” What things? The things that are true, that are eternal, and things that have been proven beyond a shadow of a doubt.
• You must “continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of…”  The plural suggests that Paul is not talking about only one thing, but many. The core is faithfulness to God’s Word, but throughout the letter we see that this also refers to a pattern of ministry Timothy had learned from Paul. The past tense, “have learned” suggests that this was something that Timothy was once assured of, but perhaps now he wasn’t so sure. Perhaps he wavered from time to time, so Paul called him back to this.
• “…knowing from whom you have learned them” It was as if Paul wrote, “Remember, Timothy: you learned these things from me.” Paul was too humble to say his own name here, but it certainly seems that is what he meant.
• Paul led him to Christ.
• Paul gave him ministry opportunity.
• Paul taught him by both word and example.
• Paul laid hands on him in ordination.
• Paul guided and mentored him in the midst of ministry.
• So, Timothy was to remember who taught him these things, “…knowing from whom you have learned them”. Paul’s idea included:
• Remember how strongly and confidently I believe these things.
• Remember the love with which I believe these things.
• Remember the urgency with which I believe these things.

Verse 15: and that from childhood you have known the Sacred Writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.

·       “…and that from childhood you have known the Sacred Writings” Timothy was raised in a Christian home. Although his father was not a believer, his mother and grandmother certainly were, and they raised Timothy in “the fear and admonition of the Lord.” Both ladies, Eunice his mother, and Lois his grandmother, were devout orthodox Jewesses. They lived in the city of Lystra, which was in Asia Minor. At some point they heard the Good News about Jesus, the Christ. Most likely it was Paul who led them to faith. They in turn passed the message on to Timothy. It became part of his heritage.

·       “…the Sacred Writings” is another name for the Holy Scriptures. Specifically, Paul refers to the Old Testament, because that is what Timothy would have learned from his grandmother Lois and his mother Eunice.

·       “From childhood you have known” Timothy had known the word of God from his earliest years; yet see how strong the exhortation is from Paul that he continue in them! Nothing is assumed; the furthest thing from Paul’s mind is an attitude that says, “Well of course we are all founded on the Bible, and we can assume that and move on to other things.” For Paul this was never assumed, not even with his trusted protégé, Timothy.

·       “…from childhood you have known the Sacred Writings” It is as if Paul said this: “Timothy, continue in what you received from me. But never forget that it didn’t start with me; it’s a heritage that was passed on to you. You learned all this long before you ever knew me. You encountered this heritage through the Holy Scriptures.”

·       We are happy to belong to the same Church as Moody and Spurgeon, and Luther and Calvin and Zwingli, the same Church as Wesley and Whitefield, and Polycarp and Ignatius. We are part of them, and they are part of us, because we are connected by our trust in the same Jesus, revealed to us by the same Holy Scriptures.

·       “…which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.” Paul tells Timothy to continue in the things he had learned, because of their great value. There is no wisdom greater than this in the world. Your wisdom about 20 other subjects means nothing if you are not wise for salvation.

·       This is something that each generation must acquire for itself and then hold on to – the appreciation for the wisdom of the Bible, and a deliberate forsaking of any human wisdom that opposes or replaces what the Bible teaches. We don’t think for a moment that mere Bible knowledge saves; there are those who know the words of the Bible well yet are not wise for salvation. Yet those words mixed with faith do make one wise for salvation. 

Verse 16-17: All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; ¹⁷ so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. 

Military training is all about preparing the recruits for what they will experience in real wartime situations. In the same way, God is concerned that Christians be trained, equipped, and armed to enter the spiritual battle and come out alive. The primary way we get trained, equipped, and armed is through God’s Word, the Bible. As Christians we live in the middle of a spiritual battlefield. Oh, it is not Afghanistan, or Syria, or Lebanon but it is a battlefield, nonetheless. And there are many Christian soldiers that are feeling totally tapped-out, tired, and running on empty from being so long on the front lines. Spiritual refreshing and renewal come from our time spent with God and with His Word. This is the only way that the Christian soldier can get reinvigorated. But why is God’s Word so important? I can think of

7 Good Reasons to Read, Study, Memorize, Practice, and Review the Word of God:

1.    It leads us to know Jesus (cf. verses 14-15).

·       Shines the way through the fog to Him.

·       Brings us to salvation (“leads to salvation”)

·       N.B. the words in verse 14, “learned,” “convinced,” and “knowing.”

 

2.    It trains us to live for Jesus. (cf. verse 16)

·       It is the God-breathed Book, therefore “profitable.”

·       For teaching = line upon line, precept upon precept.

·       For reproof (rebuke) = Stop doing that!

·       For correction = Start doing this instead! (Hebrews 4:12)

·       For training = Emphasis on the doing. (James 1:22-27)

 

3.    It equips us to work for Jesus (cf. verse 17).

·       Through the Word we learn how to be clothed in righteousness

·       We acquire the tools to be effective workmen (2 Timothy 2:15)

·       We learn of the Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23)

·       It makes us “adequate” = “Up to the job,” a value word referring to character.

·       It makes us “equipped” = With the needed skills and tools (e.g., carpenter, plumber, mechanic, soldier, etc.)

 

4.    It arms us to fight for Jesus.

·       Cf. Ephesians 6:10-18 = “Fully armed” with both offensive and defensive weapons

·       Defensive = Kidney-belt of TRUTH

·       Defensive = Bulletproof vest of RIGHTEOUSNESS

·       Defensive = Combat boots of PEACE

·       Defensive = Shield of FAITH

·       Defensive = Helmet of SALVATION

·       Offensive = Sword of the Spirit, the WORD OF GOD (the unsheathed sword)

·       Offensive = PRAYER (the loaded gun)

 

5.    It guides us to walk with Jesus.

·       Psalm 119:105 “Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path” = It shows the trees of temptation, the rocks of harm, and the “snake” on the trail.

·       Solomon, the wisest of all men says of God’s Word in Proverbs 6:21-23, “Bind them continually on your heart, tie them around your neck. When you walk about, they will guide you, when you sleep, they will watch over you, and when you awake, they will talk to you. For the commandment is a lamp, and the teaching is light, and reproofs for discipline are the way of life.”

 

6.    It purifies us to glorify Jesus.

·       Cf. 1 Peter 2:12, “Live such good lives among the pagans that they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day He visits us.”

·       Matthew 5:16, “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in Heaven.”

·       How can we be pure? Cf. Ephesians 5:26, “…by the washing of water with the Word.”

·       The Psalmist in Psalm 119:9-11 asks the same question and then answers it. “How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to Your Word. I have hidden Your Word in my heart that I might not sin against You.”

 

7.    It encourages us to hope in Him.

·       Our society is full of hopelessness. It says, especially to young people, “There is no meaning to life, there is no value to life.” A rampant hopelessness has invaded our culture, and so many popular entertainers have become gurus of the gospel of hopelessness. (e.g., Kurt Cobain, the rock singer from Nirvana, who blew his brains out, or Robin Williams, or Marilyn Monroe)

·       All around us this gospel of hopelessness is being preached, but the Word of God contains the Gospel of Hope. Paul writes in Romans 15:4, “For everything that was written in the past (i.e., the OT) was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have HOPE!” The Scriptures will bring us the hope we need to face the dark and confusing times that will surely come into our lives.

·       The prophet Jeremiah wrote the Book of Lamentations in which he speaks of his own confusion and sense of loss because of what was happening in Israel. In Chapter 3:18-20 he says: “My strength is gone and all that I had hoped for from the Lord. I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness, and the gall. I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me.” He is clearly tapped out and in effect he is saying, “God, where are You? I do not know what to do!” Have you ever felt that way?

·       Then in the very next verse, in 3:21, it is as if Jeremiah turns a corner from the shadows of the alleyways into the bright light of the street where the sun shines through. And he says this: “Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope. Because of the Lord’s great love, we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning. Great is Thy faithfulness!”

CONCLUSION:

As Christian soldiers we need to rely heavily on the Lord and on His Word to equip us and prepare us for the battles we face every day, and also the battles we will fight in the future. We need to take time every day to be in the Word and in prayer. To the degree that we know the Lord and His Word will we be able to follow Him when life gets hard.

2 Timothy Study #7

“It Ain’t a Pretty Picture”

2 Timothy 3:1-9

Study #7 in 2 Timothy Series 

INTRODUCTION:

In my library I have a novel by an Irish author named Frank Delaney. The book is simply entitled, Ireland, and back when it was written in 2005 it was on the New York Times Bestseller List for quite a while. Delaney was born in County Tipperary in the South-Central part of the Republic of Ireland, and he is an amazing storyteller. His word-pictures are so well done that in your mind’s eye you can see the scenes that he describes, and hear the sounds, and smell the fragrances. He paints pictures with words, beautiful pictures, captivating pictures. Words have great power, to instruct, to inspire, to lift us up, or to bring us down. Words paint pictures that do not require canvases or oils or brushes.

TRANSITION:

In our text for this week the Apostle Paul paints a picture with words of what the world will be like in what he calls, “the last days.” He is not specific as to the date when these things will occur, but under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit he was allowed to look down through the corridor of time to see a future day when these things would become reality.

Specifically, he is looking at human beings and the direction in which humanity is traveling. Of course, we know that since the Fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden mankind has had a serious sin problem. God tells us in His Word that all of us are sinners, both by nature and by choice, and all of us fall far short of His perfect standard in every way. Every son of Adam and every daughter of Eve is wicked to the core and in need of a Savior and it has been like that since the Fall. However, the Bible also says that humanity is in a downward slide, growing worse and worse, and here in 2 Timothy 3 Paul gives us specifics of what to look for as time draws to a close, and we move into what he calls the “last days.”

However, I believe we are already there. I believe that he is describing our present reality. I believe that the characteristics of “last days people” are what we see all around us. And I believe that it will not be long before King Jesus returns to wrap up this whole sorry mess that we have made.

NOTES on the Text:

Verse 1: But realize this that in the last days difficult times will come. 

• “But realize this…” The Greek imperative verb, gínoske, means to understand, to comprehend, to know deeply and completely. It is much more than surface knowledge. What are we to understand? That “in the last days difficult times will come.” To what “last days” is Paul referring? This phrase has already appeared in these letters. Look back at 1 Timothy 4:1-3. “But the Spirit explicitly says that in latter times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons, ² by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron, ³ men who forbid marriage and advocate abstaining from foods which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth.” So, Paul has already broached this subject of what things are going to be like in the end times. The Spirit of God has given him some insights into what is coming. As I look around, I believe we are living in those times he was only seeing from afar. For us it is our present reality, and for this reason we need to pay close attention to this instruction.
• “…difficult times will come.” What does Paul mean by “difficult times”?  The word means grievous, or hard. But what will make these last days difficult? Hold that thought for a while and we will come back to it later.

Verse 2: For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy,   

• “For men [i.e., people, generic usage] will be…” So here we start to get an idea of what Paul was thinking. He foresees changes happening in people, and these are not changes for the better. In verses 2-5 Paul gives 19 specific descriptions of how people will be in the “last days.” Let’s take a brief look at them, one by one.
• #1. Last days people will love themselves and will emphasize things like self-worth, self-value, and self-esteem. Sound familiar? They will become the center of their own little universes, thinking mainly of what is good for them.
• #2. Last days people will be in love with money, willing to do anything to get more of it, no matter who gets hurt. They will be greedy!
• #3. Last days people will be boastful [an old word meaning an empty pretender] – “I did this, I did that, I built those, Look at me,” etc.
• #4. Last days people will be arrogant/haughty, [lit. “to appear over”, means “showing oneself above others”]. They will constantly be comparing themselves to others, seeking advantage.
• #5. Last days people will be revilers [lit. blasphemers], speaking terrible things about God and about His people, attacking their character and Christian values.
• #6. Last days people will be disobedient to their parents, and not just disobedient but refusing to honor, respect, or care for their parents.
• #7. Last days people will be ungrateful, with an attitude of entitlement, never satisfied with what they have, but always wanting more.
• #8. Last days people will be unholy, holding nothing as “sacred,” including marriage, sex, promises, their word, etc.

Verse 3: unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, 

• #9. Last days people will be unloving [Greek, astórgoi, without family love/parental love], having no natural tenderness or compassion but hardened, even against those closest to them including parents, siblings, and children.
• #10. Last days people will be irreconcilable [lit. trucebreakers], so rigid in their thinking that they refuse to bend or change, even to make and keep peace.
• #11. Last days people will be malicious, diabolical gossips [lit. diáboloi], slandering whomever and whatever they do not like or understand.
• #12. Last days people will have no self-control, doing whatever feels good without thinking of the consequences.
• #13. Last days people will be brutal, enjoying inflicting pain on themselves and others, viewing it as a sport.
• #14. Last days people will hate things that are good and pure, preferring things that are dirty, sordid, and shameful.

Verse 4: treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 

• #15. Last days people will be treacherous [lit. traitors], turning even on those closest to them, stabbing friends, spouses, business partners, and children in the back to gain advantage for themselves.
• #16. Last days people will be reckless [lit. falling forward], seeking cheap thrills just for the “rush”, risking everything for nothing in return.
• #17. Last days people will be conceited and vain [lit. puffed up], self-absorbed and preoccupied with their appearance, weight, physique, and sexual prowess. They are filled up with the fetid gases produced by their putrid pride.
• #18. Last days people will love pleasure more than they love God, having their priorities completely inverted and twisted.

Verse 5: holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power. Avoid such men as these.

• #19. Last days people will embrace their own self-made religious ideas, rather than biblical truths, settling for a counterfeit Christianity devoid of real Holy Spirit power.

• And how does Paul say we should deal with such people described by these 19 characteristics? “Avoid such men as these,” meaning, “avoid these kinds of people.” But then how can we ever win them to Christ? If we refuse to engage with them, how will they ever hear the life-changing truth of the Gospel? Remember, this instruction is given in the context of church doctrine and practice. Paul would certainly say that we can engage them on the outside, in society, but we cannot tolerate such people within the membership and fellowship of the church. There is a big difference!

Verse 6: For among them are those who enter into households and captivate weak women weighed down with sins, led on by various impulses, 

• Here is where things really start to get interesting! And ladies, I am hoping you will hear me out before you start throwing tomatoes at me. Paul says that among these last-days pseudo-Christians are scoundrels who will talk their way into people’s homes to lead folks astray. He uses the verb “to creep” to describe how they get in, much like cat-burglars and cockroaches. He says that they sneak in and take gullible, sin-filled women captive with their lies. Here he uses a military term that means to take prisoners in war. He is saying that these guys sneak in and wreck homes, marriages, churches, and families by finding the weakest link.
• I am not saying that women are weak or naïve or stupid. However, we need to keep in mind that Satan first attacked Eve. In that case the devil knew that she was the weakest link so that was where he struck first. But why would Paul zero in specifically on women like this?
• Go back and reread verses 6 and 7 together. Paul uses three identifiers to describe why certain women make easy targets:

1.    “Weak women weighed down with sins” Now do not jump to conclusions. They are not weak because they are women, but because they are sinful. Sin will always make a Christian weak, whether male or female. Sin robs us of spiritual strength and vitality. These women are only weak because of their sins.

2.    “…led on by various impulses” Christians are to be “led by the Spirit” not by their impulses. Acting from emotion rather than from principle and reason will often lead us into trouble, and women often make emotional decisions, let’s face it.

Verse 7: always learning and yet never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. 

3.    “…always learning and yet never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.” Did you know that women are by far the biggest buyers of books, but especially of self-help books? Did you know that by far they make up the majority of users of psychologists, counselling centers, and help-seminars? They buy and read books like The Shack and sign up for “The Course” [aka, ACIM, A Course in Miracles]; they watch Oprah and fall for every shaman and spiritual whack-job that walks across her stage; they watch Joel Osteen on TV and think he is just “wonderful, and so spiritual.” They are by far the major movers and shakers of nearly every charismatic church. In fact, if the women were to pull out, the Charismatic Movement would fall apart. 

• We must always remember that the “natural man” cannot understand spiritual truth. The veil must be removed first, and according to 2 Corinthians 3:14-16, that only happens when people turn fully to Christ. Listen. Paul is referring here to the Jews, but it applies to any unbeliever: “But their minds were hardened; for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remains unlifted, because it is only removed in Christ.  ¹⁵ But to this day whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their heart; ¹⁶ but whenever a person turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.” So that is why I believe that these “weak women” Paul is describing here in 2 Tim. 3 are not genuine believers, but rather are self-deluded, trying to fool themselves and everybody else. Sadly, the more these women search, the more lost and confused they get because they are not searching in the right place.

Verses 8: Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men of depraved mind, rejected in regard to the faith. 

• Now Paul gives us an object lesson rooted in the Old Testament. It is interesting though, the way he does it, because he refers to two guys we have never heard of before, and whose names appear only here in the pages of Scripture. He is referring to a situation described back in Exodus 7:8-13, although in that passage the men in question are not mentioned by name. However, their names have come down to us through the mists of time, kept alive by Jewish storytellers who still love to recount the details of what happened back then.
• Maybe you remember the story. God told Moses and Aaron to go to Pharaoh and command him to let the children of Israel to go free; to make their way up to Canaan to the Promised Land that God was giving to them. However, Pharaoh refused to listen so in obedience to God Moses told Aaron to throw his staff on the ground, and immediately it became a serpent. The Scriptures record: “Then Pharaoh also called for the wise men and the sorcerers, and they also, the magicians of Egypt, did the same with their secret arts. For each one threw down his staff and they turned into serpents. But Aaron’s staff swallowed up their staffs.” Now although their names are not listed here, Jewish history records that the names of the two principal shamans in Pharaoh’s court were Jannes and Jambres. Along with Pharaoh they stood in opposition against God and against the leadership of Moses and using their “black arts” they were able to do a couple of counterfeit miracles, but in the end were made to look stupid. And it happened several times. They tried their best to match Moses’ miracles one-for-one but after the first three they ran out of gas and said to Pharaoh, “This is the finger of God.” They had run out of options and were made to look foolish in the eyes of Pharaoh and all who were in Egypt.
• Now look again at what Paul says here in verse 8: “Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men of depraved mind, rejected in regard to the faith.” Look at the three things Paul observes about the false teachers of our day.
• “They oppose the truth” This word means to take a stand against.
• “They have depraved [lit. corrupted] minds” This is what happens when people reject the truth.
• “They have been rejected [lit. not standing the test] in regard to the faith” Their moral sense has been perverted and their minds have become clouded with their own futile speculations.
• In other words, they have proved by their attitudes and actions that they are not really Christians at all, but fakes and charlatans. 

Verse 9: But they will not make further progress; for their folly will be obvious to all, just as Jannes’ and Jambres’ folly was also. 

• “But they will not make further progress” God will only let these wicked people go just so far, and then He will pull the plug on them, and on all who oppose the truth and spread lies.
• “…for their folly will be obvious to all, just as Jannes’ and Jambres’ folly was also.” What Paul is predicting is that the fact that these men are wicked fools will eventually be proved to everyone. It will be made obvious, just as in the case of the two men who went toe-to-toe with Moses and lost. In the Bible, “folly” always includes wickedness, not just stupidity. “The FOOL saith in his heart, ‘There is no God.’”
• Remember that God will always have the final word and the “last laugh.” The Bible says in Galatians 6:7, “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.” And in Psalm 2:1-4 we see puny man shaking his fist at God and making big threats; but notice what God thinks of men who try to rebel against Him and deny His lordship over them: “Why are the nations so angry? Why do they waste their time with futile plans? The kings of the earth prepare for battle; the rulers plot together against the Lord and against His anointed one [lit. Christ/Messiah]. ‘Let us break their chains,’ they cry, ‘and free ourselves from slavery to God.’ But the One who rules in Heaven laughs. The Lord scoffs at them.” 

CONCLUSION:

In the beginning of this study, I said that we would revisit the phrase we found up in verse 1 where Paul says, “But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come.” My question is this, “What makes these last days so difficult?” Certainly, the answer is related to the 19 characteristics Paul lays out describing the actions and attitudes of “last days people.” We know that because verse 2 starts out, “For men will be…” Let me see if I can summarize what I think Paul had in mind here.

These last days are difficult because…

1.    So many of the things happening around us run totally counter to Christian teaching, yet these “last days people” claim to be Christians.

2.    We are unsure how to confront sin in professing Christians in our churches, so we shirk away from even getting involved.

3.    These are church-splitter kinds of issues that bring disunity to the Body, but we feel inadequate to take them on.

4.    We are ashamed and convicted of sins in our own lives and feel unworthy to deal with the sins of others, no matter what they might be. 

I believe we are already in the “last days” because like never before, these are the marks of our civilization and much of the American Church. But do not despair! God is still in control, and He has His hand on the rudder. We can trust Him no matter what the future may bring! Look up, for redemption draws nigh!